about: the movie

Big is a 1988 fantasy-comedy film about a boy who makes a wish "to be big" to a magical fortune-telling machine, and is then aged to adulthood overnight. It stars Tom Hanks, Elizabeth Perkins, Robert Loggia, John Heard, Jared Rushton, David Moscow, Jon Lovitz, and Mercedes Ruehl. The movie was written by Gary Ross, with Justin Schindler, and Anne Spielberg. Penny Marshall directed, replacing Steven Spielberg whose sister was one of the writers.

Plot

After being humiliated while attempting to impress an older teenage girl at a carnival, Josh Baskin (David Moscow) goes to a wish/fortune-telling machine (called Zoltar Speaks) and wishes that he were "big". The next morning, he sees a face in the mirror he does not recognize. Overnight, he has become a 35-year-old man (Tom Hanks). With the help of his 13-year-old best friend, Billy Kopecki (Jared Rushton), Josh rents a cheap room in New York and gets a lowly data-entry job at the MacMillan Toy Company. In a memorable scene, he meets the company's owner, MacMillan (Robert Loggia), checking out the products at the FAO Schwarz toy store, and impresses him with his childlike enthusiasm. They end up playing a duet together on a "Big piano", a foot-operated electronic keyboard, performing Chopsticks and Heart and Soul. This earns Josh a promotion to a dream job for a kid: testing toys all day long and getting paid for it. He soon attracts the attention of the beautiful, ambitious Susan Lawrence (Elizabeth Perkins), a fellow toy executive. A romance begins to develop, much to the annoyance of her current boyfriend, Paul (John Heard). As Josh becomes more and more entwined in his "adult" life, much to the annoyance of Billy, he soon begins to wish for the carefree life of a child again and becomes determined to find the Zoltar machine to reverse the wish.

Acclaim

Big was received with almost unanimous critical acclaim. Many critics praised Tom Hanks for his "believable" and "adorable" performance.

Big was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Tom Hanks) and Best Writing, Original Screenplay.

The film is number 23 on Bravo's "100 Funniest Movies". In June 2008, AFI named Big as the tenth-best film in the fantasy genre.

American Film Institute recognition

• 2000: AFI's 100 Years... 100 Laughs #42
• 2008: AFI's 10 Top 10 #10 Fantasy

Broadway musical

main: Big, The Musical

In 1996, Big was made into a musical for the Broadway stage. It featured music by David Shire, lyrics by Richard Maltby, Jr., and a book by John Weidman. Directed by Mike Ockrent, and choreographed by Susan Stroman, it opened on April, 28, 1996.

DVD

Big has been available on DVD since 1999.

See also

• Freaky Friday (1976 film)
• Freaky Friday (1995 film)
• Freaky Friday (2003 film)
• Like Father Like Son (1987 film)
• Dream a Little Dream
• 14 Going on 30
• 18 Again!
• 13 Going on 30
• 17 Again (film)
• Seventeen Again
• Vice Versa (1988 film)
• New (film)
• Wait 'til You're Older